There’s More to Markets than Vaccines and Value Stocks

Topics: , ,

Published on April 19, 2021

| 4 min read

Kevin Armstrong, CFA, Managing Director, Consultant Relations

Share:

Global equity markets posted gains during the first quarter of 2021 as vaccine progress drove optimism about the reopening of the global economy. But market risk is about more than vaccines and value stocks. Looking at the Intech Equity Market Stress Monitor®, we continue to see signs of potential instability across equity markets that suggest caution in both developed and emerging markets.

Broad indices of large-cap developed equity markets rose by a further 4-5% as optimism around vaccination programs and the reopening of the global economy continued. This sustained rally since the COVID crash of last year means that large-cap developed markets have returned over 55% over the last 12 months.

 

Looking a little more closely, two key reversals that began in the fourth quarter of 2020 continued in the first quarter of this year. First, we saw a continuation in the resurgence of value stocks relative to growth. This was especially pronounced in the U.S. small-cap space, where the value index rose by 21%, and outperformed growth by more than 16% in this 3-month period.

 

GROWTH VS VALUE INDEXES

 

Second, we saw a continuation of the rebound in small-cap stocks relative to large. Until the fourth quarter of last year, capital had been concentrating in U.S. markets for the previous 5 years, led by the dominance of U.S. mega-cap growth stocks, which strongly outperformed smaller stocks. This had a knock-on effect on the distribution of capital in global benchmarks also, where the U.S. represents around 60% of the capital in developed benchmarks. However, since October of last year, this trend may be showing signs of exhaustion.

This chart from the Intech Equity Market Stress Monitor® shows the level of capital concentration in U.S. and Global stocks in the last two quarters. If the concentration is peaking, it’s worth noting because a reversal of the previous 5-year trend of ever-increasing capital concentration levels portends potential market stress.

 

CAPITAL CONCENTRATION - US AND GLOBAL

 

It’s also noteworthy that the picture is very different outside the U.S. This chart shows the same measure of capital concentration for the MSCI EAFE, Europe and Australia indices, and you can see immediately that the absolute level of capital concentration is at the opposite end of the spectrum in both cases. And this low level of concentration has actually further decreased in the last 6 months.

 

CAPITAL CONCENTRATION – NON-US EUROPE AND AUSTRALIA

 

In general, Intech Equity Market Stress Monitor® indicators for most global markets suggest a somewhat less-stressed condition than has previously been the case. The one exception to this is the stubbornly high level of stock correlations. These have increased sharply over the last 12 months and remain close to all-time highs. This is indicative of a heightened level of systematic risk in equity markets.

 

CORRELATION OF RETURNS

 

Finally, one trend that has not reversed over the last couple of quarters is the persistently strong returns for the beta factor in both U.S. and global markets.

 

BARRA BETA FACTOR – ROLLING 12-MONTH RETURN

 

In such an environment, investors rewarded the highest beta stocks, and this continued to be the case in the first quarter of 2021.

Of course the implications of this for defensive equity strategies, which tend to be underexposed to higher beta stocks, is clear, and such portfolios have typically lagged in recent periods. This can be seen in the difference in return between Minimum Volatility Indexes and their cap-weighted counterparts over the last 12 months.

 

CAP-WEIGHTED-VS-DEFENSIVE INDEXES

 

Get the Full Report

Look beyond conventional narratives and risk metrics. Each quarter, Intech examines equity market stability around the world through the lens of the Intech Equity Market Stress Monitor® ― a collection of five reliable metrics of market strain that can help you gain additional insight to market risk regimes.

Quarterly Report Download the latest Intech Equity Market Stress Monitor update. Download Now

 

The information expressed herein is subject to change based on market and other conditions. The views presented are for general informational purposes only and are not intended as investment advice, as an offer or solicitation of an offer to sell or buy, or as an endorsement, recommendation, or sponsorship of any company, security, advisory service, or fund nor do they purport to address the financial objectives or specific investment needs of any individual reader, investor, or organization. This information should not be used as the sole basis for investment decisions. All content is presented by the date(s) published or indicated only, and may be superseded by subsequent market events or other reasons. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal and fluctuation of value. Information that is based on past results or observations is not necessarily a guide to future results, and no representation or warranty, express or implied, is made regarding future results.